The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1887-10-08
ON THE POTOMAC.
Campaign Of South Mountain
and the Antic:am.
M'CLELLAN'S LAST BATTLE.
Lees Inva5:o1 of Maryland
Twenty-Five Years Ago.

How StonewalI Jackson's Men san.
"The Lord Bless Your Ragged. Dirty
Souls!"-Lee', Lost Dispatch-Bntti1
OF the Three Mountain Passss-Cap-
turc Of Harpsr's Ferry by the Confed-
erat.s-The sunk u Road mt sharps-
burs-Dunker Church.
I'm the CONSERVATION that reigncd at Wash
ing;on after the second battle OF BuIl Run,
Aug 80, 1852, ilaleck wrote a TASTY note to
Mcclellan, a. follows: You will retain the
command Of everything IA this vicinity not
Temporarily to be pope's army in the field.
| Beg OF you TO assist mo in this crisis with
your ability and experience
Mcclellan, ut the time of receiving this
note, was not in command OF anything to
speak Of. His army had been mostly sent to
Pope in Virginia. llaleck's order meant
that Mcclellan was % take command OF the
iefcnSeS of the city OF Washington, and that
Immediately.
After the bloody fight Of Chantilly, Sept,
/, Gen. Pope's Union army-what was left of
it-stragSled into Washington, ragged, foot
sore, and half starved. They were allowed
TO rest and pull themselves together again
for few DAYS within the intrenchments Of
the city. Meantime Pope once more re-
QueSted 10 he relieved OF his command and
sent back west. His request was allowed.
Sept. he turned his face westward and bis
back on that eastern army which he believed
had never supported him sincerely, Many
Of his couutrymen shared the same opinion.
II was declared that had Mcclellan hurried
Franklins and Summers corps forward To
the support Of Pope, rs he had been ordered
TO do, the Union defeat at the second Bull
Run would not have happened. Horace
Greeley, IN his american Conflict says 80
In so many words He writes: Had they
been there two days earlier, and had Porter
now and then condescended to obey an order,
that defeat might have been transformed
into n victory"
AT any rate, whatsoever the fault, Popes
bloody and unsatisfactory campaign was
over. His star in the east had gone down.
The eyes of tho country once more turned TO
Mcclellan. Those first years OF the war
were, OH the Union side a desperate hunting
after great generals.
Sept. ., President Lincoln and Gen. Hal
leck placed Mcclellan again at the head OF
all the eastern army. They personally called
at his house and asked him to take command
again. The Army OF Virginia was no more,
and the reorganized Army Of the Potomac
rose upon its ruins.
The army in Washington having rested,
still formed as fine body of fighting men as
need be. Rest brought back their old spirits,
recruits poured III from all quarters and soon
filled out the skeletonized regiments. Sept. Z
Mcclellan led out Of Washington an army
5000 strong. A new campaign was TO re-
store the confidence Of the country in her
Young Napoleon
Banks was left in command Of the defenses
at Washington. Mcclellan led out from the
city the First, Second, Sixth, Ninth and
Twelfth army corps, commanded respect
lively by Hooker, Sumner, Franklin, Reno
and Mansfield Gen. COUGHS division of the
Fourth corps was attached to the Sixth.
Fitz John Porter, with his Fifth army corps,
joined Mcclellan Sept II. The total strength
of his army Is put at this date at l04, 246. OF
this splendid army, Burnside commanded
the right, Sumner tho center and Franklin
the left Cen Alfred Pleasonton had charge
Of the cavalry. In this order the army Of
the Potomac advanced once more to try con-
illusions with Lee and b men. They did not
exactly know where Lee was yet, but it was
not long TIL they found out.